President Surangel Whipps Jr. said that urgent action is needed over the plastic pollution crisis.
Whipps and his delegation are in Greece for the 9th Our Ocean conference this week. He said plastic pollution remains a threat in the Pacific.
“It remains a critical concern for the Pacific region despite contributing only less than 1.3% of the mismanaged plastic waste globally, with projections now indicating that the future by 2050 there’ll be more plastic than fish,’ he said.
With this alarming projection, it is time to take action against plastic pollution.
Palau has called for the new plastics treaty to focus on the full lifecycle of plastics including controlling production rather than relying solely on recycling to combat the plastic pollution crisis.
Whipps said the ongoing negotiations on the comprehensive International legally binding instrument on plastic pollution addressing marine pollution through such an instrument “is vital for the health of our marine ecosystems and the well-being of our future Generations.”
He joined other Pacific leaders in being hopeful for a positive outcome from the conference.
Urgent action on plastic pollution, Whipps says at Our Ocean in Greece
